Mass communication research methods / edited by Anders Hansen.

Includes bibliographical references.

Volume 1. Asking the right questions (theory, history, traditions, context in mass communication research). Theory in media research / Oliver Boyd-Barrett -- The complementarity of qualitative and quantitative methodologies in media and communication research / Klaus Bruhn Jensen -- Media, culture and modern times : social science investigations / Graham Murdock -- Remarks on administrative and critical communications research / Paul Felix Lazarsfeld -- Media sociology : the dominant paridigm / Todd Gitlin -- Communication research : one paradigm, or four? / Karl Erik Rozengren -- The three paradigms of mass media research in mainstream communication journals / W. James Potter, Roger Cooper and Michel Dupagne -- The new revisionsim in mass communication research : a reappraisal / James Curran -- Mass communication research : asking the right questions / James D. Halloran -- Cultural compliance and critical media studies / Greg Philo and David Miller -- Researching media institutions, organisations, professionals and production. The history of media institutions. Finding data, reading patterns, telling stories : issues in the historiography of television / John Corner -- Problems and possibilities in the writing of broadcasting history / Asa Briggs -- Media professionals and media production. Participant observation : researching news production / Simon Cottle -- The research method / Philip Elliott -- News as purposive behavior : on the strategic use of routine events, accidents, and scandals / Harvey Molotch and Marilyn Lester -- Four approaches to the sociology of news / Michael Schudson -- Media gatekeeping / Pamela J. Shoemaker -- Research approaches / Richard V. Ericson, Patricia M. Baranek and Janet B.L. Chan -- New(s) times : toward a 'second wave' of news ethnography / Simon Cottle -- Holism, communion and conversion : integrating media consumption and production research / David Deacon -- Volume 2. Researching media institutions, organisations, professionals and production (continued). Politic

Provides a systematic and comprehensive introduction to the key research methods and approaches used in the study of mass communication and media. Beginning with a clear and cogent discussion on the principles behind good research, including the key question of how to select the right methods for individual research questions, the authors explore in a thorough and systematic fashion a range of different methods and approaches. From the study media organizations and the practices of media professionals to media content, representations, and audiences, the development and application of each method is described in depth and the steps involved clearly outlined. Examples of research instruments are given where appropriate, and in each case references for further readings are provided. Offers as a guide in a wide range of courses, including communications, media and cultural studies, and other social science disciplines.